Device for removing oil from annular spaces

ABSTRACT

To remove oil from an antifriction bearing, an annular space is defined between the outer and inner rings next to the row of bearing elements. A stationary part is at the inner ring. An oil discharge hole passes through the stationary part. An oil guide plate having an obliquely inclined baffle plate part extends partially around the rear side of the discharge hole and up into the annular space from the stationary part to guide oil into the discharge hole.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a device for removing oil from annularspaces along side an anti-friction bearing wherein the stationary partaround the bearing race discharges oil.

Antifriction bearings are lubricated, inter alia, with oil. It isfrequently necessary to use this oil at the same time as means to removeheat from the bearing. For this, circulation of the lubricant isnecessary. In many cases, oil is therefore fed and discharged throughchannels. Since oil discharge holes are normally arranged perpendicularto the rotating shaft, the oil can generally not pass out of the bearingspace immediately. Accordingly, particularly in the case of high speedsof rotation, a large amount of milling work takes place in the bearing,whereby heat is additionally produced. It must, therefore, be seen to itthat the oil introduced is removed over the shortest possible path. FromEP Unexamined Application for Patent 232 978, a device is known in whichthe oil is removed through oil discharge openings which are connectedtangentially to the annular spaces of the bearing. Such tangential holesare, however, difficult to produce in many cases. In particular,however, existing bearing housings having vertically arranged holescannot be readily equipped with this device.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

One object of the present invention is therefore to provide a device bymeans of which these disadvantages are avoided and with, which an easilyproduced and installable mean for removal of the oil, which means iscompact but nevertheless highly effective, is obtained.

If an oil guide plate is arranged alongside of the anti-friction bearingin the annular space radially inside each oil discharge hole, the oilwhich is entrained by the moving parts and accumulates in this annularspace is picked up by said plate and conveyed into the hole. If this oilguide plate is produced as a separate part, the construction is simple.The oil guide plate in that case is of a funnel-like construction andcan be applied to a ring which is arranged alongside the bearing and atthe same time serves as spacer ring. A ringless embodiment is alsopossible in which merely a funnel-like structure having a length of tubewelded, for instance, thereon is used. In this case, the length of tubeis inserted into the hole. In these embodiments it is hydrodynamicallyfavorable for the baffle plate to be curved or directed obliquely to theentrance of the hole.

These embodiments furthermore have the advantage that, in differentcases of use with a different quantity of oil, baffle plates havingdifferent heights which are adapted thereto can be used.

The device described can be used with the same advantages both in anembodiment with rotating shaft in which the oil baffle plate is fastenedto the housing and in an embodiment with rotating housing in which theoil baffle plate is arranged on the shaft.

From Federal Republic of Germany Provisional Patent AS 22 09 345, askimming member is known by means of which oil is also accumulated andconveyed further, but in that case, the skimming member rotates, whichis more expensive. In the solution in accordance with the presentinvention, the skimming member is stationary. In this case, the kineticsof the circulating oil is used in order to remove the oil.

The invention will be described in further detail with reference to fourfigures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal section through an antifriction bearing havingthe device in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 2 is a view along the line A--A of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 shows the partial cross section B--B of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 shows a variant of FIG. 3.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

In the antifriction bearing of FIG. 1, a ball bearing 2, which rests inthe stationary housing 3' is arranged on the rotating shaft 1. Within anannular space 3' of the housing 3 alongside the bearing 2, there isprovided an easily produced spacer ring 4 which not only fixes the axialposition of the bearing 2 but is also provided with the oil guide plate5. As can be better noted from FIGS. 2 and 3, this plate consists of afunnel-like structure the main part of which represents a baffle plate5'. This baffle plate 5' has the result that the oil 7 which collects onthe inner surface of the spacer ring 4 due to the rotating parts, suchas shaft 1, bearing inner ring 2' and balls 6, and is conveyed in thedirection of rotation (see FIG. 3) is skimmed off and then conductedfurther into the radially directed discharge hole 8. In this way, theamount of oil which, for instance for reasons of cooling, is relativelylarge is removed rapidly from the bearing space. Thus, the milling workand the heating of the oil and of the antifriction bearing resultingtherefrom are avoided.

FIG. 4 shows an even simpler embodiment. In this case, there is providedas oil guide plate within the annular space 3' merely a funnel-likestructure 9 having the baffle plate 9' which is connected to a length oftube 10 which is welded thereon and therefore simple to produce. Thelength of tube is then introduced into the hole 8.

I claim:
 1. A device for removing oil from an antifriction bearing,thebearing comprising an inner ring, an outer ring around and spaced outfrom the inner ring, bearing elements between the inner and the outerrings, so that the rings can rotate relatively; one of the rings beingrelatively stationary with reference to rotation of the other ring; theinner and the outer rings both extending axially away from the bearingelements in one direction to define an annular space which is locatedbetween the inner and the outer rings and axially alongside the bearingelements; the device for removing oil comprising: a stationary part atthe one bearing ring around the annular space; at least one oildischarge hole passing through the stationary part from the annularspace for discharging oil from the annular space through the oildischarge hole; an oil guide plate in the annular space located behindor after the oil discharge hole in the direction of rotation of theother ring; the guide plate including a baffle plate extending out ofthe stationary part into the annular space and extending from a locationat the stationary part which is behind the oil discharge hole, thebaffle plate being directed obliquely in the direction around theannular space counter to the direction of rotation of the other ring andalso directed obliquely across the annular space for directing oil intothe oil discharge hole.
 2. The device of claim 1, wherein the oil guideplate and the baffle plate are together to define a separate partlocated at the stationary part.
 3. The baffle plate of claim 1, whereinthere are a plurality of the baffle plates of different heights abovethe stationary part.
 4. The device of claim 1, wherein in a radial topview, the baffle plate is curved at least on the axial side of the oildischarge hole that is away from the bearing elements.
 5. The device ofclaim 1, further comprising a stationary ring in the annular space whichis stationary along with the stationary part; the oil guide plate beingintegrated with the stationary ring.
 6. The device for removing oil ofclean 1, wherein the oil guide plate includes a part that is spacedabove the baffle plate and above the oil discharge hole in the annularspace, and the part of the oil guide plate extends through the annularspace counter to the direction of rotation of the other ring.
 7. Thedevice of claim 1, wherein the one ring is the outer ring, and the outerring is stationary relative to rotation of the inner ring.
 8. The deviceof claim 1, wherein the baffle plate extends only partially around theoil discharge hole and is located on the side of the discharge holewhich is behind the oil discharge hole in the direction of rotation ofthe other ring.
 9. The device of claim 8, wherein the baffle plate iscurved around the oil discharge hole.